The present invention relates to a disc cartridge adaptor that enables a small-size disc-shaped information storage medium (hereinafter, simply referred to as a xe2x80x9cdiscxe2x80x9d) to be mounted in a disc drive intended for a disc larger than the small-size disc.
With rapid progress of computer technology, discs have been widely used for recording/reproducing various types of information. Discs comprise an information storage layer and a substrate supporting the information storage layer, and have a variety of standards defining the storage density, the size, the recording/reproduction method, and the like of the discs. For example, a disc having a diameter of 80 mm and a disc having a diameter of 120 mm are available. Since a disc is inserted into a recording/reproduction unit (disc drive or player) for recording, reproduction, and erasing of information, a variety of disc drives are available to comply with the variety of standards of discs.
Various types of disc cartridges also have been developed for housing a disc in a case to protect the record surface of the disc from contamination.
In the above situation, it will be convenient for users if discs having different sizes can be mounted in the same disc drive and used, by inserting the disc into a disc cartridge. To attain this, the following idea, for example, has been examined. That is, a small-size disc taken out from a small-size disc cartridge is housed in a cartridge adaptor having the same size and contour as those of a larger-size disc cartridge, and the disc-housing cartridge adaptor is mounted in a disc drive intended for a large-size disc cartridge for recording, reproduction, and erasing of information.
Hereinafter, a non-disclosed disc cartridge and disc cartridge adaptor prototyped by the present inventions before completion of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13.
FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate a disc 1 having a diameter of 80 mm, a disc holder 75 for holding the disc 1, and a disc cartridge 70 into which the disc holder 75 holding the disc 1 is inserted. In FIG. 12, the upper half of a cartridge case 71 has been removed. The disc 1 is inserted into the disc cartridge 70 in the state of being held by the disc holder 75 and housed rotatably in a housing portion 72. A predetermined gap is secured between the housing portion 72 and the disc 1. The gap is designed so that free rotation of the disc 1 is ensured and that the disc 1 can be reliably placed on a motor and the like when the disc cartridge 70 is mounted in a disc drive.
The cartridge case 71 has an exposing portion 73, which is opened/closed with a shutter 74 slidable along the front end portion of the cartridge case 71.
The disc holder 75 is insertable into and removable from the cartridge case 71, and includes a holder body 76 and disc supports 77 extending from the holder body 76. Stop portions 78 are formed on both ends of the holder body 76 for retaining the disc holder 75 in the cartridge case 71. The stop portions 78 are elastically deformed by application of a force, and the retention of the disc holder 75 in the cartridge case 71 can be released by this elastic deformation.
The holder body 76 has a grip 81 in the center that is thicker than the other portion of the holder body 76. The grip 81 is designed so that the user can grasp the grip 81 when taking out the disc holder 75 from the cartridge case 71 and from a case body 91 of a disc cartridge adaptor 90 to be described later.
The disc supports 77 are shaped to surround part of the circumference of the disc 1 with the predetermined gap described above therebetween. Disc hold pieces 79 protrude from the disc supports 77 for holding the disc 1. Specifically, the disc hold pieces 79 protrude from the top and bottom surfaces of the disc supports 77 inward in a lateral direction, so that the disc 1 is prevented from slipping off from the disc holder 75 when the disc holder 75 is taken out from the cartridge case 71.
Next, the disc cartridge adaptor 90 will be described with reference to FIG. 13. The disc cartridge adaptor 90, which was designed by the present inventors, is intended to house the disc 1 and the disc holder 75 taken out from the disc cartridge 70 in the case body 91. The cartridge adaptor 90 has the same size and contour as those of a large-size disc cartridge for a 120 mm disc and thus can be mounted in a disc drive intended for the large-size disc cartridge.
An opening 92 is formed at the rear end face of the case body 91 for removably accepting the disc 1 and the disc holder 75. An exposing portion 93 extends from the center to the front end of the case body 91 in a disc radial direction, to allow an optical head and a disc motor not shown to enter the case body 91.
The case body 91 also has a guide wall 97 functioning as a guide for insertion of the disc holder 75. A shutter 94 for closing the exposing portion 93 is slidable along the front end portion of the case body 91 and is urged with an elastic member 95 in a direction in which the exposing portion 93 is closed.
An open/close lid 96 is pivotably attached to the case body 91. The open/close lid 96 closes the opening 92 after the disc holder 75 has been inserted into the case body 91 and also serves to place the disc holder 75 at a predetermined position in the case body 91.
The operation is as follows. The disc holder 75 is removed from the cartridge case 71 by grasping the stop portions 78 with fingers to apply a force inward and thus elastically deform the stop portions 78. During this removal, the disc 1 is also taken out from the cartridge case 71. The removed disc holder 75 holding the disc 1 is then inserted into the disc cartridge adaptor 90 through the opening 92. The disc holder 75 proceeds inside the case body 91 while being guided by the guide wall 97. The open/close lid 96 is then moved to close the opening 92. By this closing, the disc holder 75 is positioned inside the case body 91. Simultaneously, the disc 1 is also positioned.
When the resultant disc cartridge adaptor 90 is inserted into a disc drive intended for a large-size disc cartridge, the shutter 94 slides in association with the insertion movement, opening the exposing portion 93. A head enters the disc cartridge adaptor 90 through the exposing portion 93, to allow recording, reproduction, erasing of various type of information.
In the above construction, the disc supports 77 are elastically deformable. Therefore, the disc 1 is easily removed by elastically deforming the disc supports 77. With the disc supports 77 having small stiffness, however, the disc 1 may accidentally slip off from the disc holder 75.
In order to increase the stiffness of the disc supports 77 to prevent easy removal of the disc 1, the thickness of the disc supports 77 in the direction parallel to the principal surface of the disc 1 may be increased. However, increase in this thickness inevitably increases the size of the disc cartridge 70, and thus fails to realize a practical disc cartridge.
Moreover, if the stiffness of the disc supports 77 is increased, it becomes difficult for the disc 1 to pass between the disc hold pieces 79 to be placed inside the disc supports 77 when the disc 1 is incorporated in the disc supports 77.
In view of the above, the disc supports 77 must be provided with elasticity large enough for the disc 1 to be removed. This causes the possibility that the user may remove the disc 1 from the disc holder 75 after the disc holder 75 is removed from the disc cartridge 70. There also arises the possibility that the user may insert the disc 1 into the disc cartridge adaptor 90 directly without being held by the disc holder 75 and close the open/close lid 96 with the disc 1 alone housed inside. In this case, although the movement of the disc 1 inside is restricted by the case body 91 and the open/close lid 96, a large gap is formed due to the absence of the disc holder 75.
Therefore, the disc cartridge adaptor 90 described above has a problem that it may fail to place the disc 1 in position.
There is also the possibility that the user may insert the disc 1 alone into the disc cartridge adaptor 90 and afterward insert the disc holder 75 into the disc cartridge adaptor 90. In this event, the disc holder 75 must be inserted smoothly so that it can properly hold the disc 1 inside.
The disc cartridge adaptor 90 has another problem that the disc holder 75 and the disc 1 may drop off from the disc cartridge adaptor 90 when the lid 96 is opened.
An object of the present invention is to provide a disc cartridge adaptor operable even when the user removes a disc from a disc holder and inserts the disc alone into the disc cartridge adaptor or when the user inserts a disc alone into the disc cartridge adaptor and afterward inserts a disc holder.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a disc cartridge adaptor that prevents a disc holder and a disc from dropping off from the disc cartridge adaptor when the disc holder is removed from the disc cartridge adaptor.
The disc cartridge adaptor of the present invention is a disc cartridge adaptor for housing an information storage disc and a disc holder holding at least part of the disc, the disc holder being removably housed in a disc cartridge case. The disc cartridge adaptor includes: a case body including a housing portion for rotatably housing the disc, an exposing portion for exposing at least part of a recording surface of the housed disc, and an opening communicating with the housing portion for allowing insertion and removal of the disc holder and the disc; and a lid pivotably supported by the case body, the lid blocking the opening, wherein the housing portion can house the disc together with the disc holder or without the disc holder, the lid includes disc positioning means having a positioning member movable between a first position and a second position with respect to the lid, and the positioning member is in the first position restricting the position of the disc within a predetermined range when the disc is housed in the housing portion without the disc holder, and retreats to the second position when the disc holder is housed in the housing portion.
In a preferred embodiment, the disc positioning means has an elastic member urging the positioning member toward the first position from the second position.
In another preferred embodiment, the positioning member is at least one pin movably supported by the lid.
In still another preferred embodiment, the first position is determined so that a gap is formed between the positioning member and the disc when the disc is housed in the housing portion without the disc holder and rotated with a disc drive.
In still another preferred embodiment, the top end of the positioning member has been moved backward from the first position by the disc holder when the disc holder is housed in the housing portion and the lid closes the opening of the case body.
In still another preferred embodiment, the case body includes a pair of movable members movable in a direction of insertion of the disc, and the movable members can grasp the disc holder inserted into the case body.
In still another preferred embodiment, each of the movable members has a pivot plate having a protrusion engaging with a recess formed on a side face of the disc holder, and when the disc holder is inserted into the case body beyond a predetermined distance, the engagement between the protrusion of the movable member and the recess of the disc holder is established by operation of the pivot plate.
In still another preferred embodiment, the movable member has an elastic member urging the movable member in a direction opposite to the direction of insertion of the disc, and the elastic member urges the disc holder grasped by the movable member when the disc holder is removed from the case body.
In still another preferred embodiment, the case body includes a press member for pressing the disc holder toward either one of principal surfaces of the case body for positioning of the disc holder.
In still another preferred embodiment, the housing portion of the case body has a shape and size capable of housing a disc having a diameter of 80 mm, and the outside shape and size of the case body is substantially the same as the shape and size of a disc cartridge capable of housing a disc having a diameter of 120 mm.
In still another preferred embodiment, the case body has means for preventing the disc holder from being inserted upside-down into the case body.